Suppliers Warn EPA Against Regulatory Rollback

The auto industry isn't speaking with one voice about the need to reassess Obama-era greenhouse-gas standards.

While auto manufacturers have welcomed the second-chance EPA review under the Trump administration, suppliers of emissions-control and fuel-efficiency technology are pushing back, fearing they could bear a significant financial burden if timetables or targets are loosened. These suppliers have committed to investments in r&d and production capacity based on the standards set out and initially affirmed by the Obama administration, and they want regulators to stand by them.

The dispute isn't just about the financial health of these suppliers, but also the underlying economic arguments of the national program that the government and auto manufacturers finalized in 2012.

"From a supplier's standpoint, you are making that investment and expecting certain levels of demand, which allows you to price your product more favorably because the volumes are going to be greater," said Alan Baum, founder of market research firm Baum & Associates.